Endless power transmission belts, or so-called V-belts, are widely used throughout industry; and, in many applications such belts are subject to corrosive attack due to their operating environment. For example, in the metal plating industry it is necessary to clean metal articles thoroughly prior to plating thereof with the desired finish and such cleaning is often achieved by placing the metal articles in an acidic or alkaline cleaning liquid which is agitated to provide the cleaning action in a more efficient manner.
In many applications the cleaning liquid is agitated with a suitable agitator which is driven by an elastomeric V-belt. However, most V-belts employ materials in their various component portions which are readily corroded and damaged by the cleaning liquid whereby a serious problem in using V-belts in a cleaning liquid environment is to assure that each belt is provided with a cover which is resistant to corrosive attack by such liquid.
It is known in the art to provide a V-belt having a cover surrounding the main body thereof and as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,800,611, for example. However, most belts proposed heretofore are comprised of component materials (such as exposed ends of woven fabric) which are readily attacked and destroyed by a corrosive fluid. Accordingly, it is important that a belt which is to be used in a corrosive fluid have a cover which is resistant to attack by the fluid and serves to isolate and shield the remaining portion of the belt enclosed therein.